At the “Gen Z Buy Now Pay How” panel at the Weekend Media Festival, there was a discussion about the revolution in how Generation Z shops and pays. Our CEO, Damir Čaušević, moderated the panel, which included participants Željka Mojzeš (BIPA Croatia), Tana Zimmerman (Bazzar), Dario Marčac (Crew Media), and Daniel Šturm (Kaufland).
Generation Z demands a fast, simple, and almost seamless shopping and payment experience. Dario Marčec pointed out that TikTok and Snapchat dominate as the main sources of information and communication among them, even though Meta still leads in e-commerce advertising on social networks overall. TikTok advertising yields incredible results, but brands must carefully choose their approach – organic content builds trust, while forced ads create resistance.
“I think it’s important to note that social media is not just for making campaigns for products of low value, TikTok advertising can work extremely well with more expensive products and services. One of our clients was a dental clinic which offers a service whose pricetag is in the 15 – 20 thousands euro range. With just several hundreds of euros invested in advertising in the UK market, we generated many serious leads and potential clients”, says Marčec.
Although BIPA is primarily focused on women aged 30+, Bipa strives to follow the habits and communication style of Gen Z, and Gen Alpha as well, aware that they are their future customers. Even though some members of Gen Z do not manage their own funds yet, they do influence their parents buying decisions.
“Young girls, while they do not have their own money, talk to their parents about their wants and needs, prompting their purchases. This means that we need to adapt to the younger generations, which we do not only in our communication style, but when selecting our products. As an example, I can tell you that when we introduced Rihanna’s make up line, the products were pratically flying off the shelves”, points out Mojzeš.
Daniel Šturm noted that, although only 20% of Generation Z controls the household budget, their shopping trends and preferences clearly indicate the future – younger generations often shop online, visit physical stores less frequently, and spend less time in them. He also mentioned that the appearance of physical stores is changing, with the introduction of self-checkout stations and digital advertising.
“We can not compare the look of our physical stores today with the way they looked 10 or 20 years ago and there is no denying we are adapting our brick-and-mortar stores to fit the needs of the younger generation. When we look at the way they pay in stores, I can say that only a third of gen Z buyers of them use cash to pay, which means that two-thirds of Gen Z buyers use cards or digital wallets at checkout”, comments Šturm.
Tana Zimmerman recalled the early days of Bazzar in Croatia and the slow growth of the webshop, which only skyrocketed when they introduced cash on delivery as a payment option. This change in January 2016 resulted in a fourfold increase in the number of orders. While cash on delivery is still often used, Zimmerman noted that higher amounts are more frequently paid by card, and there is certainly a growing trend of card payments, as well as alternative payment methods like digital wallets or cryptocurrencies, which are also supported on Bazzar.
“While we are aware we have to prepare for Gen Z and even Gen Alpha, retailers need to carefully balance the needs and habits of new consumers with the other generations. We have to be aware that these changes will not happen overnight and it will take time, so we still need to continue to serve the needs of other generations, which at this point may be our main consumers”, warns Zimmerman.
In conclusion, the panelists agreed that online shopping in Croatia and the region is still very significant and present, and its further growth is inevitable. It is necessary to monitor international trends and adapt them to our market to satisfy both Generation Z and older generations, who remain the primary consumers.
What can we expect in the future? Cryptocurrencies, digital wallets, and further refinement of the user experience. Retailers, get ready, because Gen Z is rapidly approaching their thirties – and Gen Alpha is already just around the corner!
Photography: Marko Lopac
